


just another girl who took my breath away

by jakepurralta



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Childbirth, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, a smol papa holt moment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-14
Updated: 2016-01-14
Packaged: 2018-05-13 20:52:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5716702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jakepurralta/pseuds/jakepurralta
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rey Santiago-Peralta was a wonder to behold, and Jake Peralta was having the best day of his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	just another girl who took my breath away

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Slow Dance Toward The Future](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5515187) by [Missy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Missy/pseuds/Missy). 



> This fic was inspired by this: http://smolperalta.tumblr.com/post/137235233580/marie-smile-hope-so-fast-forward-to-when-jake but it eventually turned into... whatever this is. *finger guns away*

_“I hope she gets your nose.”_

_“Ugh. Don’t say that…”_

-

Rey Santiago-Peralta was a six pound, seven ounces tiny human when she was first brought to the world, with her father’s eyes and her mother’s nose. Naturally, she was wailing because the hospital lights were terrifyingly bright; the exact opposite of the warmth of her mother’s comforting womb.

But after recovering from the initial shock of it all, she took it like a champ. Her eyes widened in innocent curiosity as her father cradled her in his arms, her head small enough to fit in the palm of his hand.

“Welcome to the world,” Jake nearly choked on his words, his eyes brimming with tears. “…Rey Santiago.” He continued to rock her in silence when Amy reached out to him, softly tugging at his sleeve once to get his attention.

“Santiago-Peralta.”

“Rey Santiago-Peralta.”

-

_“A… girl?”_

_“Hm-hm. We’re going to have a daughter.”_

_And that’s when it happened again. One of those rare occurrences when resident chatterbox Jake Peralta, was rendered completely and utterly speechless. His lips trembled ever so slightly. Mouth opened, then snapped back shut._

_The last time he – or actually, his body – reacted like this happened two weeks after she realized that Jake was the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, and she’d gotten down on one knee to propose to him. Much to her surprise, he later admitted that he had also bought a ring and was had his proposal all planned out. (He did end up proposing to her a few days later, but it was only for emotional significance. If all went well, this would be the last chance for him to propose, after all.)_

_Amy squeezed his hand a little when after a good minute, Jake still seemed to be frozen in place. Her touch apparently brought him back to life and he instantly sprang into action by moving in to fall into her arms and stay there, his head buried into her shoulder._

-

It all feels so surreal to him, exiting the room, moving through the hospital’s sliding rooms to meet his friends and family to tell them the good news.

He was a father now.

And in that moment, it felt like everything he struggled through in life was supposed to lead to this. This feeling of pure serenity and a chest that was bursting at the seams with love.

He entered the waiting room, and he must’ve been looking dazed because everyone turned to him with questioning looks in their eyes that bordered on the fringe of concern.

He swallowed once and beamed, though his eyes couldn’t quite look straight at anyone else’s. “She’s here.”

The room erupted with cheers. Karen Peralta and Maria Santiago both let out relieved sighs and smiled at one another, the latter grabbing hold of her husband’s arm while Karen moved forward to check up on her son’s mental state.

Rosa bumped Charles on the arm – which seemed to be a habit for her in lieu of an uncharacteristically ecstatic response – but Charles’s own overjoyed state of mind seemed to provide him with a pain tolerance high enough to endure it.

Gina was off to the side, smiling because Jake was basically like a brother to her. She had always been there by his side as the two of them grew up from rowdy children to mature adults. Come rain or shine, Jake would always be Jake, but now he had a wife and a daughter that he loved to death. Even though she still considered childbirth to be nature’s single most disgusting mistake, she couldn’t help but deem herself lucky to see him in what was undoubtedly one of the best moments of his life.

Terry couldn’t help but think about how he felt when his own daughters were born. “Compared to this, those memories will be garbage!” Jake had once said to him, to which Terry felt his muscles tense defensively, voice turning into a growl as he inquired why Jake would have the audacity to suggest that work could ever make him feel better than his wife and kids. He chuckled at the thought. Jake would surely get his point by now.

And then, after Jake’s mother stopped fussing around him, there was this moment when he looked over to the farthest corner of the room, where Captain Holt was standing (when he used to think that’s where his biological father should’ve been) and a wave of assurance washed over him. Raymond nodded once, lips upward. Jake could practically hear him say, “I’m proud of you.” It was enough for now.

Jake cleared his throat to regain his composure, his mother still lightly clutching the fabric of his sleeve. “It’s been kind of a long day and Amy’s gonna get some sleep later, but you can all come meet her in groups.” He turned to face Karen, Maria and Luis. “How about the grandparents go first?”

Karen’s grip tightened in response.

-

_“Just another day started out like any other, just another girl who took my breath away!” Jake’s singing was loud and remarkably off-key, his voice occasionally shooting to two octaves higher than its ordinary pitch, but as Jake cheerfully tapped on the steering wheel and bounced on his seat, Amy couldn’t bring herself to mind._

_She chuckled in amusement as he tried to re-create the sound of guitar picking with his mouth. “How many times have you listened to this song by now?”_

_“Too many times, I close my eyes and I see Jesse McCartney!” Jake truthfully says._

_Amy shakes her head with a smile. “Good thing to tell your pregnant wife, Jake.”_

_He merely shrugged and braced himself for his favorite line of the song ever since Amy broke the news about his daughter. “Just another day that I had the best day of my liiiiife!”_

-

“Well guys,” Jake grins, his hand on the door handle. “Time to meet her.”

Karen still looked like she held a mixture of fear and excitement and perplexity all at once, while Maria had a lot less patience and tried to urge Jake to open the door a little quicker, her restlessness only slightly being held back by Luis’s hands on her shoulders.

When Jake finally pushed the door open and walked them over to Amy’s bedside, he heard Maria gasp and softly utter something in Spanish while Karen watched in awe as Amy held her sleeping newborn.

Jake grinned, dropping his voice to just barely above a whisper so he wouldn’t wake her up. “Meet… Rey Santiago-Peralta.”

“Rey… that is a beautiful name.” Luis tried to speak quietly, but his voice remained thick in the air. It didn’t wake Rey up though, so it didn’t seem to bother anyone.

Amy looked up, tired eyes meeting her father’s eyes. “It’s fine, _papí_. She sleeps like a log. I think she gets it from Jake.”

They chuckle a little at that, and Maria moves closer to Amy, putting a hand over her arm, looking at Rey, looking back at Amy. “Oh, _mija_ …” she muttered, clearly trying to see if there was anything to worry about.

Amy tilted her head slightly, giving her mother a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, _mamá_. We’re all fine here,” her eyes sought to find Jake, who had his arm around his mother, perhaps to keep her from toppling over. “Jake took great care of us.”

“Hey, you know I love being given credit for stuff, but you’re the trooper here.”

When all conscious eyes turned to him in disbelief, knowing that he’d discredit himself to the ground if he could when he just saw Amy in labor for over eight hours, he conceded. “Alright, alright. Let’s just say it was a team effort.”

He smirked when he offered her his fist and she bumped hers against his with a laugh.

-

“I haven’t heard you sing in a while.”

“Hm?” It was late at night, they were both exhausted and trying to sleep.  Well, 'trying' was really the key word here. Jake rustled in the seat that was actually two uncomfortable seats facing each other like a makeshift bed that had him lying in a painfully unnatural position. He couldn’t care less though, as long as he could be with Amy and get some shuteye in the process he was happy.

“I haven’t heard you sing in a while.” Amy repeated herself, her voice still a bit groggy from sleep. But it’s been a long day, and Amy’s back is hurting too much to stay asleep, so she (perhaps selfishly, because he did appear to be sleeping) wants to hear his voice.

“Wow, Ames. I didn’t know you had such an appreciation for the soothing sound of my voice.” Sleep and the fact that he hasn’t hydrated in a few hours made his voice sound a tad hoarse, which was rather comical considering the things he’d just said.

Amy shrugged her shoulders, even though she knew he wouldn’t see it in the darkness of the night. “Before Rey was born, you were singing that Jesse McCartney song all the time. I figured her actual birth would only make it worse.”

From the bed, she could make up a silhouette of him, his chest moving up and down as he chuckled.

“Alright, babe. Prepare your ears for some of the best singing of your life.”

-

_Amy Santiago  
online_

_“Jake. Where are you? We need to talk.”_ ✓✓ _12:05_

_“uh oh! Someone’s in trouble!! Idk why I said that” 12:08_

_“Seriously Jake, this is big. Get your ass home, STAT.”_ ✓✓ _12:10_

_“it’s a lil 2 early for a booty call, don’t u think santiago” 12:11_

_Amy Santiago  
typing…_

_Amy Santiago  
online_

_“i’ll b there in 5 mins” 12:20_

_-_

_“What’s going on? Are you okay?” Jake immediately started firing off questions as he marched through the front door and found Amy sitting on the couch, her hands clutched between her knees, eyes looking forward at nothing in particular._

_She looked disoriented, like she wasn’t sure why she was sitting there or what she needed to do. Wasting no time, he sat down next to her to put a leather clad arm around her. “Ames. Ames, talk to me.”_

_She turned her head in his direction but didn’t really look him in the eyes. “You might want to sit down for this.”_

_“Uh,” he chuckled, “I think I’ve got that covered. Tell me what’s up.”_

_She paused for a moment, put a hand on his knee. “You’re pregnant.”_

_Jake blinked once, processing the weight of the news. “What?”_

_“I- I mean, we’re pregn- I’m pregnant. I’m the one who’s pregnant here. With a baby.”_

_“You’re… pregnant.” He repeated her slowly, feeling his arm drop down on the couch._

_Amy nodded nervously, her hair messily moving up and down in the process. “Yup. I am pregnant with a baby that is most definitely yours. You’re going to be a father.”_

_“I’m... going to be a father.” Never once did words sound so foreign to him, yet, he felt his heart thump violently in his chest with what was sure to be excitement. It was finally happening. He was starting a family with her._

_“This is awesome!” Delirious laughter escaped from his lips and he basically crashed himself into Amy to pull her into a hug so fierce she ended up having to tap his back numerous time before he let her go from the confinement that was his arms._

_“Sorry. But at least now you know what it feels like when your mother hugs me.”_

-

The next morning, most of Jake and Amy’s friends and family went back to work and life went on. Jake went home to pick up some clean clothes, her parents visited once, Karen finally considered herself physically stable enough to hold Rey for a moment, and nurses occasionally popped in and out to check on Amy and Rey’s condition. Everything was going perfectly fine.

“Peralta. What are you doing here? Amy’s still in the hospital. I figured I wouldn’t be able to tear you from her side.” Holt approached Jake at the precinct, who was rummaging through Amy’s desk, a little clumsily.

“Oh,” Jake shot up, accidentally dropping the bag of clothes he had clutched under his arm. “I was just picking up some stuff for Amy. She said she left her book here so I said I could just swing by and get it.”

“Ah.” Holt brought his cup of coffee to his lips, taking a small sip. He knew that many around them were aware of the fact that Amy had just given birth to Jake’s child, so all eyes were on them, even the eyes of those who didn’t know them all that well. Fortunately, Holt’s presence discouraged people to charge over to Jake – who was already back to digging through Amy’s drawers – and bombard him with a million questions. Even Charles, who was sitting a few feet away and noisily tapping his feet like an excited puppy, remained seated.

“How is Amy? And Rey?”

Jake triumphantly fished a book from Amy’s bottom drawer, slipped it into his bag, then turned his attention back to Holt. “She’s awesome. And she’s awesome,” he spoke, already a big fan of giving vague answers about two of his favorite women. “she held my thumb today, already so strong.” He considered his words. “I’m talking about Rey.”

“Yes, I presumed that.”

“Well, anyway, Cap’n,” Jake slung the duffel back over his shoulder, “I should probably scoot back to the hospital. The ladies await!”

“Yes. I’ll be sure to give you both another visit soon.”

“Dope!” Jake smirked, getting ready to walk towards the elevator, when he paused and thought of something. Holt was already turning back towards his office, but Jake stopped him in his tracks. “Hey Captain?”

Holt redirected his attention to Jake, eyebrow raised in anticipation.

Jake’s gaze momentarily fell to the ground and he dropped the volume in his voice, like he always did when he was about to talk about something personal. “Thank you for being there yesterday. My mom was there and Amy’s parents and everyone else, but you know how I couldn’t get anything more than a text message out of my dad. Thanks for showing me that you care about my life more than my actual father.”

Holt stepped forward, putting a hand on his shoulder. “It takes more than just DNA to be a father.”

Jake grinned. “That’s exactly what I told Charles a few years ago.”

“Well, you were right. You’ve come a long way since I first met you, Jake. I’m very proud of you. I know you’ll easily be a better father than Roger ever was, and you’ll do Rey and Amy good.”

Jake nodded once, the words causing an unspoken weight to fall from his shoulders. Amy had already reassured him that he’d be a great father, and so did his mother, and deep down, he believed them. But it still had a different impact, coming from Raymond Holt. “Thank you, sir.”

-

When Jake returned, Amy was resting in bed with her eyes closed but Rey was nowhere in sight. Instantly, he looked across the room and felt a shock of worry pierce through him.

“Where’s Rey?” he asked, not even bothering to say ‘hello’ or putting the duffel bag down.

Amy opened her eyes and smiled, albeit somewhat weakly. “It’s okay, Jake. She’s in the nursery getting a bath.”

“Oh.” He let out the breath he was holding in and walked over to her to hand her the book he requested, which she gratefully took from him.

“How was everyone at work?”

“I wanted to get back to you as soon as possible, so I just spoke to Holt. But I know for a fact that everyone was staring at me, it was quite nerve wrecking. I’ll send them an ‘all’s good in the hood’ text later.” She groaned a little as she began sitting up, and he took the opportunity to start fluffing her pillow. At first, he was too preoccupied to notice her staring at him, but after a good minute it was kind of hard to miss.

“Seriously Ames, if you want to kiss me you can just tell me. I know I’m very kissable.”

“Psht. Don’t flatter yourself.”

“Says the woman who fell in love with me when I specifically told her not to, who then married me and now, lastly, had my baby.” He was grinning from ear to ear and Amy wasn’t quite sure if she wanted to smack or kiss it off.

“You tell me _I’m_ in love with you but you look at me like I’m-“

His brown eyes softened as he smiled at her. “-the best day of my life.”

“What?”

He sat down on the side of her bed, covering her hand with his. “I once told Terry that I was going to die alone and work was all I was ever going to have. And I once told Terry that solving a case would feel better than his wedding day and better than the day his wife gave birth.”

“And did he punch you in the face for it?”

Jake laughed. “No, but he wanted to. I guess I just wanted to say… thank you.”

“For what?”

“For proving me wrong. No matter how awesome solving case 52ABX-32QJ was, it doesn’t come close to how I felt when you were standing in front of me to marry me, and to how I felt when I first saw Rey.”

Amy blushed, feeling a bit sheepish under Jake’s gaze. “You’re not so bad yourself. You’re going to be a great father. I already know you’re a great husband.”

Jake leaned forward to press a kiss on her forehead, then stopped when he began moving back.

“What?” Amy asked. He was making a habit out of randomly staring at her.

He booped her nose. “I’m glad she has your nose.”

She couldn’t help but roll her eyes at that. “Jake, stop about your _damn_ nose. You have a great nose!”

“Yeah, but I would argue that I have better eyes. See? You’re getting lost in them right now.”

Damn him, he was right. He knew that just looking too deeply for too long into those brown eyes of his still made her knees feel weak.

“Shut up. You should make better mouth.”

He made a face. “What the hell does that mean?”

“It means, ‘kiss me, Peralta’.”

“Now, _that_ I can do.”

You know when something happens and you think about a song that you heard maybe once, or twice, two decades ago? A song you didn’t particularly care about, that was maybe only 40% applicable to the situation? That was Jake Peralta with Jesse McCartney’s ‘Best Day Of My Life’.

But he was Jake Peralta, _damn it_ , and she was Amy Santiago, and now, the other she in his life was Rey Santiago-Peralta and he was the kinda guy who wore his heart on his sleeve and so he did. He blasted the song as hard as he could, whenever he could, and he’d murmur it softly while doing the dishes or taking out the trash.

It provided comfort for his painful childhood and hope for his promising future.

First, Amy took his breath away.

Now, Rey.

And it was the best day of his life.


End file.
